I Was Born To Tell You I Love You
by Aelita Madeline
Summary: Finally getting Yumi & Ulrich together in a roundabout sort of way.
1. Fond Memories And A New Student

A tall girl walks down the long street, towards the boarding school she's attended for five years now. The first four of those were blurry moments, like when you try to go to a station on television that doesn't exist. The fuzz and harsh sound deter you away, covering up any sign of a program that would've been there... But the fifth year was when every changed.

* * *

She'd gone to her self-defense class, as she'd done for the past two years.. always alone. Except this time Jim wasn't the only one she saw upon walking into the gymnasium. A fairly tall boy with brown hair and deep brown eyes looked back at her. _Who's this_ she wondered, not a fan of having an audience during her lessons, especially not a guy. The look on her face must've revealed a lot, because Jim spoke up quickly, "Now don't worry about this one, Yumi. He's a good kid. Wanted to try out this class. So don't scare him away," he added on the end of his summary. "Oh, and his name's Ulrich."

_Ulrich_ she thought, trying to decide if she liked him by the sound of his name. _I can't tell anything. I'll have to see how he fights. After all, actions speak louder than words._

"Ready?" she said this almost like a greeting to the boy.

"When you are," was his quick reply. _Ah, he's confident. That's always good_ she thought, before she made her move.

They dueled for a fairly long time, at least in Yumi's opinion. She'd never met someone so fierce and so coordinated before at this school, muchless anywhere else she'd been. "You're pretty good," she admitted at a point when she stopped briefly to catch her breath. Then she went to kick his side, but he blocked her leg with his own.

"Same to you," was his reply, kicking her leg away and getting into his practiced fighting stance. They went on like this for a minute or two more, before it happened.

She guessed they'd just gotten far too into their fight. One move, that's all it was. One move. And everyone knows that this ancient martial art was based on every move having a "reply" made by your opponent. So he made his reply... but somehow he tripped, knocking them both to the ground. The boy landed, rather awkwardly, right on top of her. At first they didn't realize what had happened, but then Yumi's eyes widened. His cheeks reddened first, then hers. Sheepishly, he placed his hands on the gym floor to lift himself up and off of her. He was so startled that he couldn't get his muscles to cooperate, so he ended up flopping down on the cool floor beside her. "Sorry," he managed to breathe quietly.

"S'alright," she replied calmly, her face returning to its normal complexion. But her heart was still beating at the speed of sound. At the speed in which he'd accidentally collided with her and brought a feeling into her mind she'd never felt before. _A crush? Yumi Ishiyama? No way. That would never happen to me._

Jim broke into her thoughts with his polite applause. "Good, good," he complimented them. "You two make quite a dueling pair. I'm looking forward to seeing you practice together more often." He gave them that goofy smile of his, then held his watch up to his face. "Well, time to quit for today. See you again Wednesday. Same time, same place." With that said, he half-walked half-marched, as was his style, from the gym, leaving them alone.

"Have I seen you around school before?" Ulrich asked. "I'm in ninth grade."

"Probably not," she replied, smirking a bit. "I'm in tenth grade."

"Oh. Well, I could've sworn I saw you on campus somewhere..." he said thoughtfully. "Jim never told me your name, but I've heard it somewhere before. You're Yuri, right?"

At this, she glared teasingly at him. She gave him a swift kick at his calves, knocking him off balance and causing him to fall. It took him a moment to register what happened, but he was able to keep himself from getting hurt by landing on the palms of his hands. "What was that for?" he asked.

"The name's Yumi."

* * *

Ever since that day, nothing had been the same. Everything seemed to come in a whirlwind - Ulrich, his strange friends, fighting on Lyoko, meeting Aelita... They'd fought and fought so long, they were so close... she expected that any day now, the pink-haired beauty that she knew haunted Jeremie's dreams would be materialized onto Earth and attending Kadic School with them. But until then, she'd keep on fighting alongside Ulrich and Odd, doing whatever she could to help out.

* * *

He sat outside school, trying to remember if there were any homework assignments he'd forgotten. School started in a little over 10 minutes - just enough time to get some B+ work done. (He knew never to hope for an A-, much less an A.) Just then, he was distracted from all thoughts of responsibilites, because he'd spotted her... She was a few hundred feet away, coming down the road towards the school. She probably didn't even see him. In truth, he almost didn't want her to; he wasn't certain at all what she thought of him, of them... if they were more-than-friends, less-than-together? He could only wish... Oh, to just watch her walk. When she got closer, he could just barely see her lips curving into a smile... closer still he could see her eyes glimmering with the new morning's light. _If only she were truly mine_ he wished, telling his eyes to stop staring, because she'd gotten close enough to tell if he had been... "Good morning, Yumi," he called out.

Then she looked his way. And she grinned wildly. _Such beauty, such elegance... why hasn't someone taken her by now? I mean, I'm definitely grateful for this, but also confused... I'm quite sure she's the most desirable girl in school. Yet why hasn't she had any guys pining after her?_ "Hey there," she returned, finally reaching the boy seated on the splintery school bench. "Where are the others?"

"Odd's getting fifths at breakfast, Jeremie's working on some kind of computer program... thank goodness I haven't seen Sissi all morni-" Just as he spoke, who did he hear but the Queen of Whining herself? _Speak of the devil_ Yumi thought, narrowing her eyes at the raven-haired girl sauntering towards them.

"Oh Ulrich dear!" she practically screeched, planting her feet at his side and reaching out with both her hands to grab one of his. He tried to pull away, but she has a fairly strong grip. "Remember that mumbo jumbo Mrs. Hertz taught last Biology class? Well, I think I've got most of that worksheet figured out, but I'm having trouble with one problem.. and school starts in 4 minutes, so I was wondering..."

"Why don't you get Herb to help you? I've heard he's excellent at science," Ulrich countered, finally managing to pull his hand free of her grasp.

"Yeah," Yumi added. "He's so good, he's tutored me in Chemistry once." She feigned a grin at the obnoxious girl. "Go on, run along now. After all, there are only 3 minutes left before the bell rings." With that, Yumi gave the girl a light shove on her left shoulder, directing her towards the school's front entrance.

"But..." she replied weakly.

"Go on," both of them told her. At last she got the message and walked forlornly through the main doors and down the hall.

_Glad Ulrich never fell for her little pouty act before I met him..._ Yumi thought gratefully. "So... only a few minutes left.." Yumi commented.

"Yeah," was Ulrich's quick and brief reply. Then they stood, a bit awkwardly. _We're alone._ Ulrich thought. _Should I tell her? This will be my only chance for a while. After all, it's rare that we're left alone together..._

"Yumi, I..." he started a bit hesitantly. Just then he was interrupted.

"Hey there, I'm new here and I don't really know where to go..." a boy's voice broke through Ulrich's thoughts. _So much for that..._

Ulrich didn't bother to turn and look at him. But Yumi did. And she couldn't help it, but.. she liked what she saw. Pale blue eyes glanced back at her from beneath thick black lashes. "Someone told me to go to you, said you'd know where I should go.. you're Yumi, right?" he said to her. "I'm William," he continued, extending his hand towards her. She met it with her own and, for a moment, dared to look directly into his eyes. "So, where do I go first?"

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

So far, just a bit of an introduction. This is when William first came to Kadic. So, how do you like it so far? Ulrich's got competition. Will this finally prompt him to tell Yumi how he feels? And what's going on with the other three, anyway? Review, and the next chapter will be yours for the reading. )


	2. Chemistry

She'd never thought any guy would ever get her attention again after she met Ulrich. Now here she was, leading the "new kid" around in a daze. His eyes had the affect of hypnosis upon her. As she blindly led him to his first class, she was thankful that her feet were on auto-pilot while her mind was elsewhere. 

CHEMISTRY, the sign above the door boldly proclaimed. Out of all the things to call a science class, why did that have to be the title they chose? She could feel butterflies fluttering around in her stomach just reading the word. Because every time she saw it, she thought of Ulrich.

* * *

On a crisp spring morning, about two or three months ago, she'd gotten up to go to school, as usual. Tugged on that beloved black sweater, laced up her coveted black boots, and ran a brush quickly through her cropped hair. "Got to run, Mom. I'm meeting the gang for breakfast in about 10 minutes," she called as she flew down the stairs, pausing only briefly to kiss her mother lightly on the cheek.

"Oh, Yumi," her mother said slowly, remembering something. Yumi turned slightly to face her. _Hurry up_, her mind wailed, not wanting to wait, no matter what her mother had to say.

"Well..." she began even slower, causing Yumi to bite her lip in frustration. "You shouldn't do that, you know. Makes your lips more chapped than they already are," Mrs. Ishiyama reprimanded quickly. This sudden order of hers seemed to speed up her speech considerably. "Anyway, just wanted to let you know that I found a note slipped under our door this morning. Must be from one of your many secret admirers." She pulled out a folded piece of notebook paper and held it out. "Don't worry, I didn't read it."

"Thanks, Mom," Yumi said, hastily grabbing the paper before running out the door. Her mother sighed softly, wishing her daughter would spend more time around the house, rather than running around all hours of the day with that crazy gang of hers. Just once, she'd like to be chosen on a slow afternoon, rather than the alternative of "hanging out" around campus. _Oh well. Guess life can't be perfect_, she thought, longingly gazing at the long-closed door once more before continuing on with her chores.

Yumi fingered the worn notebook page somewhat anxiously. For the briefest moment she debated when to open it. Then she figured there was no time like the present. Slowly unfolding it, she found it'd long been creased; had the writer been holding it captive quiet a while before placing it at her doorstep? Once it was open completely, she only saw two lines of writing.

"I hope you see the chemistry between us.  
-Edward"

_Edward?_ her mind wondered, searching her mental yearbook. She couldn't recall any Edwards attending Kadic High. Maybe someone from a nearby school? Nah, she didn't know anyone well enough from any rival schools to prompt such a message as this. But then, who in the world could this Edward be?

* * *

She figured out, by interrogating Odd, that Edward was Ulrich's middle name. This made her 99 percent certain that he was the mysterious "admirer" who'd left the note at her doorstep. Why he didn't feel he could sign it with his proper first name, she almost understood. After all, she was the one who'd be too shy to even leave a note like that in the first place, muchless sign it with any name belonging to herself.

If she ever chose to write such a thing in her life, she would a) make sure it was more than just one simple line (her tendency to ramble would prevent that, anyway) and b) sign it with a pseudonym. That way Ulrich could guess all he wanted as to who'd sent it, but it wouldn't be even remotely attached to her actual name.

But now, she wasn't so certain she'd find a reason to send him such a "love letter". Because every time she heard William's voice rise and fall behind her, speaking small talk, she felt her heart literally skip beats. _What in the world is wrong with me? You're in love with Ulrich, remember?_ she scolded herself. Yet, at the same time, she was loving every moment of William's full attention.

They sat in the class. He took his seat next to her. _Keep calm, he only did that because he's new and you're the only person he knows._ Then he turned to look at her dead on. For a moment, he seemed to search her face. Suddenly his eyes locked onto hers, and she could feel the next breath she'd planned to take catch in her throat.

"You're gorgeous, you know that?" he said easily, as if he always said things so romantic and sweet. Although, she secretly hoped he hadn't. Hoped she was the first girl caught off-guard by such a compliment.

"Thank you," she replied, trying to keep her tone polite rather than immensely flattered. But her face betrayed what she really felt, as those annoying little patches of red crept up her neck and rested at her cheeks.

Just then, the bell rang, causing her to sigh quietly in relief. One more moment and she was sure she would've dissolved into a liquid state, her entire body melting and surrounding William's ragged tennis shoes. That would've been attractive, she was sure.

---

During the class, she was just barely able to pay attention to the lecture. Her eyes refused to stop wandering over to William. His posture was excellent, his gaze direct, his whole demeanor full of concentration and intrigue at what the teacher was lecturing about. And, she had to admit, she was a sucker for intellectual guys. That didn't include Jeremie, obviously; he was one of her best friends, almost like a brother to her. And besides, he was already clearly taken.

She grinned at that thought, distracted now by the mental image of Aelita and Jeremie together. 6 months, just half a year she'd been on Earth, and they still hadn't kissed. They'd held hands though, plenty of times. It was fun to watch Jeremie reach for her hand, turning red before he even touched her, then seeing her grin and grab his hand in reply. They were so adorable together, it was almost sickening. No cuter couple existed in the world than Aelita and Jeremie.

The bell signally the end of class jolted Yumi out of her thoughts. Of course, she had barely paid attention to whatever her teacher had just taught about. She had a couple of hardly legible lines written in her notebook, something about gravity and whatnot. Sad, she couldn't remember writing anything down. Ah, well. Didn't really matter. She'd catch up later.

What she had to worry about now was the fact that lunch was in just 40 more minutes.


	3. Harsh Memories Turn To Harsher Reality

Ulrich struggled to pay attention in his algebra class. Odd was, once again, trying to successfully count how many wads of gum were under the table. Once he'd completed that, Ulrich was sure he'd move onto flavors next. How... _palatable_. He shuddered. Odd was something else. 

Jeremie, on the other hand, was taking very detailed notes. He was fairly confident he could just snag Jer's notes during lunchtime or study hall and copy his own, sloppy translation of the genius's own form of gibberish.

Yet again he found his eyes roaming towards the expansive classroom windows. He pictured himself away from this wretched place, out basking in the mid-afternoon sun, on a weathered park bench. And, of course, she'd be there, in all her glory. The sunlight would frame her face just right... she'd look like his dark angel. Fallen from heaven, she'd arrived at precisely the right moment. She didn't know it at the time, of course, but that day at self-defense class with Jim... Oh, he'd been so close to the edge, he could taste the canyon's haunting embrace.

* * *

A shaking brunette holds a saftey pin to his wrist, daring himself to draw it closer and pierce the flesh. Just then, he hears the sound of a key sliding into the doorknob. He hastily hides his tool of choice under his lumpy pillow. Then he grabs a comic book from the drawer beneath his bed and feigns interest in the fading panels.

"Hey there!" Odd greets him brightly. "How can you read in the dark?" The blonde flips on the light, revealing faint tearstains down each of Ulrich's cheeks. "Hey," his manner changes a bit, from enthusiasm to mild concern. "What's up, man? You okay?"

"Just fine." He means to sound reassuring, but his reply comes out so quiet and gruff that Odd is left more suspicious than before.

"It was your dad again, right?"

"I don't want to talk about it." With that said, he curls up in the fetal position and faces the wall, glaring at the ugly shade of beige it's painted.

Odd promptly climbs onto the stubborn boy's bed and sits on his legs. "Oh, you're going to talk."

"Now that's no fair," he fake-pouts in reply.

"I think it is." This brings about a round of play-wrestling between the two, which ends up reversing their positions. Just as Odd begins to swat at him, struggling for his place on top again, he happens to knock aside the pillow. The safety pin, left open in Ulrich's rush to hide it, pricks him in the back of the neck.

"Youch!" he howls. "Why have you got this here?" He gingerly picks it up and holds it up in front of his face. "Ulrich..." His voice trails. "You have to tell me now. Please."

---

So he draws out the long, painful tale. One of constantly disappointing his parents, constantly being harassed by Sissi and her cronies, and constantly longing he could just disappear.. for good. Odd ends up staying up many hours that night, counseling him, trying to convince him that he's got so much more life left.

Reluctantly, Ulrich collapses into a deep sleep that night. He silently hopes he won't awake again the next morning. However, this wish isn't granted, as his eyes are assaulted by morning's joyful light once more.

Little does he know that, just that afternoon, he'll meet his reason to live.

* * *

The class bell rang loudly, causing a chain reaction of closing books and stuffing notes into bookbags. "Remember to study for your test! After all, it's only two days away now!" Mrs. Hertz feebly tried to yell over the students bounding out of the class. They were anxious to get to lunch; nothing would stop them now.

However, Ulrich's footsteps seemed to possess somewhat of a limping quality, dragging him through the doorway and down the bustling hall.

He'd seen the way Yumi looked at him. That slight glimmer in her eyes. She'd never looked at him that way. Her whole face seemed to light-up, more than the candle she'd been carrying for him had ever shone. It almost sickened him. Of course, he wanted her to be happy. Just not with anyone else.

Yet, he'd been given so many chances. Maybe she'd finally given up on such a bashful boy. Maybe this new guy - William, he believed he'd called himself - would make her forget everything she'd ever expressed to him.

Maybe she'd move on.


End file.
